April 18, 2015

Players take on a different look

Those tall,
glamorous young women at the Stanford alumni center were women’s basketball
players attending the annual spring banquet April 15.

Some people had to
look twice to recognize them with their fashionable dresses, nicely styled hair
and, in some cases, high heels, like the stilettos worn by senior guard Jasmine
Camp.

All photos by Dave Cortesi

Two hundred people
enjoyed the buffet dinner and the chance to socialize with the players, fans,
coaches and staff members. The event was planned and coordinated by DeeDee
Zawaydeh, longtime administrative assistant and emcee for the evening.

The main part of
the program featured head coach Tara VanDerveer introducing each player by
academic class and handing out thanks to the dozens of people behind the team
and mostly behind the scenes. It made one realize how many people are needed to
build and support an outstanding team.

Young
fan had serenaded team

Tara began by introducing one of the team’s
youngest fans, 4 ½-year-old TJ Louie. TJ had been so taken with the team that
he wrote a song that named every player and sang it to the team one day in the
locker room.

He was seated with
his favorite player, junior forward/center Tess Picknell, and his grandmother,
Marianne Austin. He was wearing a red T-shirt with a picture of the team on the
front and all the players’ names on the back.

The coach called
the just-concluded season “a great year, a very different year” with a
different offense, varying starting lineups and nine different players as
game-high scorers.

Freshmen
are first for praise

She then called the
players to the front for praise, starting with the three freshmen:

Guard
Taylor Rooks, who has “a positive attitude.”

Guard
Brittany McPhee, who was the team’s best free-throw shooter and “loves the game
of basketball.”Forward
Kaylee Johnson, who was the team’s best rebounder and shot blocker and who set
the Pac-12 freshman rebounding record previously held by some Stanford greats.

Sophomores,
junior come forward

After more thanks,
the sophomores went to the front for Tara’s
kudos:

Guard Lili Thompson, who is “an outstanding player with glimpses of brilliance.”

Guard Karlie Samuelson, who is “one of the most intelligent basketball players I’ve ever coached” and who is a “fearless competitor.”

Guard Briana Roberson, who went “from a practice player to a gamer” and who “gives the team speed and quickness.” Forward
Erica “Bird” McCall, who was the team’s second-leading rebounding and shot
blocker, who is a “leader by example” and whom “I love coaching.” Forward Kailee Johnson, who had a tough start because of injuries but who is intelligent and versatile. Karlie, who broke her right pinky finger before the start of the Pac-12 tournament, was wearing a device to immobilize it and the adjacent finger after starting off with a cast and a sling and then just a cast.

Next came Tess, the
team’s lone academic junior. “Tess is one of my favorite players” and
contributes to the practice and scouting teams, Tara said.

Seniors
are thanked, give thanks

Finally, it was the
seniors’ turn. The group that had started as what was termed the six-pack four
years ago was down to just five at the banquet.

Missing was guard
Amber Orrange. Having completed the course work for her degree, she’d had to
move out of her dorm just a few days before, so she returned home to Houston to await the
outcome of the next day’s WNBA draft. (Amber was drafted by the New York
Liberty as the overall 23rd pick.) “We wish her well,” Tara said.

Among the
accomplishments of the class of 2015 was a 127-19 overall record and a 59-5
record at home in Maples Pavilion.

Tara called Jasmine “nurturing, unselfish and
dedicated, … a quintessential teammate.” In the program, which includes the
other players’ salutes to the seniors, several referred to Jasmine as the team
mom. Jasmine has another year of eligibility, but has decided to move on to
graduate school or a job.

Like all of her
classmates, Jasmine thanked everyone for their support, adding, “This has been so
special for all of us.”

Alex
to return for final year of eligibility

Guard Alex Green
also has another year of eligibility and will return. She was on crutches and
wearing a heavy brace.

She tore an ACL in practice a week before the start of
the NCAA tournament and had recently undergone surgery. This was the second ACL
tear for her, but a different knee. She “worked really hard all season,” Tara said.

Referring to
forward Taylor Greenfield, Tara said that Taylor
had had some good games in the past, but “this year’s Pac-12 tournament took
the cake,” resulting in her being named its Most Outstanding Player.

Taylor, who is from
Huxley, Iowa,
noted that “coming to Stanford all the way from Iowa wasn’t easy,” but her mother supported
the move. She thanked associate head coach Amy Tucker for going to Iowa, despite its wintry
weather, to see her play during the recruiting process. “This has been a
special four years,” she said.

Erica
to work in San Francisco

Forward Erica
Payne, who already has a job lined up, is a “very high energy, positive
person,” Tara said. Erica will work as a
consultant for Deloitte in San
Francisco after graduation.

She thanked the
coaches for the “opportunity to go to one of the best schools in the country.”
And she thanked the fans, who “always made me feel like a starter.”

Tara noted that with the change in offensive
strategy, forward Bonnie Samuelson was moved from the 3 position to the stretch
4. One of the program’s all-time best 3-point shooters, she had 81 treys this
season. Her 237 career 3’s trail only Candice Wiggins, ’08, and Jeanette
Pohlen, ’11. Bonnie plans to go to medical school and become a doctor.

Speaking of her
sister, Bonnie said, “Karlie’s always there to put me in my place.” As for her
teammates, “You’re my sisters through life.”

Jasmine, Taylor, Erica and Bonnie
got to take home their framed jerseys displayed behind the podium. Presumably
Amber already has hers, and Alex will get hers next year.

Next came a video
that highlighted each player’s performances and accomplishments as well as
video recaps of the season.

Tara closed the evening by saying, “Tomorrow we
look forward to next year.” She named the four incoming freshmen and said,
“Great players are made in the offseason.”

No comments:

Post a Comment

About Me

Judy reviews San Francisco Bay Area theater and writes feature articles about activities of the Stanford Women's Basketball team and Fast Break Club. A longtime Bay Area journalist, she is retired from the San Francisco Chronicle, where she was a writer and copy editor.